March 7, 2007

Philippine meat processors advised to prepare for boost next year
 

Meat processors in the Philippines have been advised to increase capacities by 2008, when the entire country is expected to be declared as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD)-free.

Francisco J. Buencamino, executive director of the Philippine Association of Meat Processors, Inc., said the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) is expected to include the Philippines in its updated list of FMD-free countries in May next year.

Buencamino said local meat processors will initially target Southeast Asian markets and later venture on to South Africa and the Middle East.

He said 75 percent of the 150 meat processing plants in the country are located in Luzon, which has not been declared FMD-free by the OIE even if Luzon has not had any report of outbreaks in the past six months. The OIE has declared the Visayas and Mindanao as FMD-free.

The country is preparing its initial pork exports to Singapore by July this year.